To Fern's Homestead!!

"The wise woman builds her house,
but with her own hands
the foolish one tears hers down"
(Proverbs 14:1)

I recently redecorated my bedroom. I repainted the walls, hung a matching wallpaper border, refinished the furniture, and added new pictures and dried flower arrangements. It was a lot of work -- but well worth it. I get a lot of satisfaction when I walk in the room and see the pretty decor.

Generally speaking, it's the men who build the structures, and it's the women who fill them with color, beauty, order and life. It's women who make a house a home.

Proverbs says that the wise woman builds her house. The Hebrew word for build means "to establish; to make firm or stable; to secure permanently." The word for house means "family." This verse draws a parallel between a woman's attention to the physical aspects of her home and her attention to her family's emotional and spiritual well-being. Just as a woman invests time, energy and money into maintaining and beautifying her house, she ought to invest in building up the ones she loves. In doing so, she establishes her relationships, making them firm and stable.

The foolish woman tears down her house with her own hands. Few of us would literally destroy our homes by slinging mud or smashing walls, yet sadly we don't think twice about emotionally smearing or assaulting our husbands and children. We bear grudges, bring up past hurts, sneer, belittle or retaliate. This is foolish indeed.

~ Dear Father, forgive me for foolishly tearing down my house with my own hands. Help me to be wise. Help me to be careful to invest in building up those I love. Amen.

**Build into the relationships in your life!**

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